


Metanoia || Tom Riddle

by neomaholbrook



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Best Friends, Death Eaters, F/M, Friendship/Love, Hogwarts, Post-Hogwarts, Pre-Canon, Pureblood Politics (Harry Potter), Pureblood Society (Harry Potter), Riddle at Hogwarts Era, Slytherin, The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, Wizarding Wars (Harry Potter), Wizarding World (Harry Potter), Young Tom Riddle
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-13 17:00:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29156982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neomaholbrook/pseuds/neomaholbrook
Summary: "Fate is a peculiar thing... For a reason unknown to me, mine and Tom's paths seem to be intertwined... for an eternity."There isn't a single person in the Wizarding World who doesn't know about Lord Voldemort and how he started those horrible wars in an attempt to obtain rulership. But only a few know how he became the Dark Lord everyone came to fear.Elara Black is a willful young girl and a member of the most ancient noble pureblood family. But what happens when she starts Hogwarts and meets a strange young boy who seems exceptional in every way? And as she sees his darkness within, will she rise to fight it? Or will she embrace it? Follow Elara's life story as she struggles through love and friendship and see what really happened all those years ago...____[All characters and settings belong to J. K. Rowling except my oc's. English is not my first language so please be kind and notify me if you see any mistakes! Constructive criticism is always welcome! If you enjoy this story please consider leaving a comment or kudos since they are always helpful feedback to the author :)]
Relationships: Tom Riddle/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 5





	1. September 1st 1938

There were nothing but two giant wooden doors, a sea of black robes and the excited murmurs of the returning students. As they neared the entrance, it suddenly opened by itself, revealing the enourmos entrance hall of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I was among the first ones to enter the breathtaking castle, staying behind to admire the ancient beauty. 

A little way ahead a tall and lean figure had noticed I wasn't following her anymore and was stomping towards me with her long, sleek hair waving fiercely. She was my sister Lucretia; overly stylish for her age and always painfully meticulous with her appearence.

"Hurry up, you slug!" she rushed impatiently. Lucretia was about to begin her third-year and thus considered herself superior to me, which only fed her delusion of authority when our mother had instructed her to guide me safely to the castle.

"Coming!" I protested as she proceeded to steer me further into the hall. "I'm just... nervous."

The gaze in her dark eyes softened in the warm gleam of candles and she crouched to look me in the eyes. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. All you have to do is to sit with a hat on your head."

"Okay, I have to go now but just wait here, the headmaster will be here in a minute", she guided and stroked my short hair swiftly before following the other students heading toward the Great Hall. Soon after a man with long brown hair and a matching beard marched toward us.

"My name is Armando Dippet and I am the school's headmaster. Welcome to Hogwarts!" he said, smiling warmly. 

"Come after me, we shall enter the Great Hall where you will be sorted."

Dippet led us through the huge oak doors of the Great Hall. I followed along in the long line of first years, feeling slightly nervous yet extremely thrilled at the same time. 

We stood in a neat row ready to be sorted while Dippet brought the hat and set it in front of us. He took a long piece of parchment from his pocket and rolled it open.

"Evelyn Abott!" he called, reading the list. A blonde girl who looked like she was about to faint crept to the hat and sat down. 

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the hat declared after a while. Only a few other names were called before my own. I marched to the chair with a pair of unsteady legs.

Here we go, I thought as I set the hat on my head. 

"Hmm... Another Black, eh? Well, let's see if you have what it takes to join the long line of Slytherins in your family", the hat said in my head.

"I see you have quite the amount of Slytherin qualities, but you could find your place in Gryffindor, too...", the hat mumbled. What did that mean? Was I not fit to be in Slytherin? 

"Should you join the house of the cunning and resourceful? Or perhaps, would you be better off among the bold Gryffindors?" wondered the hat. My body felt cold with all the nervousness in me, yet all I could do was to sit still and wait those tormenting moments the hat took to sort me.

"Hmm, SLYTHERIN it is", and the Hall was filled with cheers. I sighed with relief and couldn't stop smiling as I headed to the Slytherins table. 

"That's my sister!" Lucretia congratulated when I sat next to her. "I would have disowned you if you had become anything else!" she teased. I snorted at her and sat back relaxed after all the tension was released. 

At last all of the new students got sorted and headmaster Armando Dippet stood up from his chair, facing all the students.

"Welcome, welcome, to another great year at Hogwarts! As many times before, new students are sorted, excited and hungry, but before we can begin this magnificent feast, let me once more remind you of the school rules..." 

I let his voice become a silent murmur in my ears and fiddled with my fork instead. I knew the rules. My parents had insisted that Lucretia should teach them to me before I got here so she had lectured me thoroughly on the Hogwarts Express. Not that she had much respect for rules, instead she always told me I must know the rules so I can learn how to break them. 

The students clapped politely when the headmaster sat down and finally the food appeared in front of us. I couldn't decide what to eat so I took a little bit of everything on my plate. I laughed and chatted with a few of the other Slytherins, mostly with my sister and her friends, and ended up having quite a delightful evening. 

It was getting rather late when he caught my eye. A black haired boy sitting alone near the end of the table. His eyes were wandering all over the Hall, but they never made contact with any of the other students. I wasn't sure why but I found his behaviour extremely fascinating.

"What are you staring at?" Lucretia asked, mouth full of dessert. Then she followed my gaze to the boy. 

"Who's that? Elara, where are you going?"

I stood up and marched to the boy. He startled and lifted his gaze slowly, as if he was surprised that somebody dared to approach him. He then raised his eyebrows arrogantly at me. 

"What?" he blurted out in a rather ignorant tone. Now that's a friendly start... 

"I was just wondering if you'd like to join our company? You could make some friends", I tried. Now that I was closer I could see that he was very thin and pale and his dark eyes had a distant and cold look in them. 

"I don't need friends. I'm used to being on my own", he snapped and turned away. 

"Okay...", I mumbled slowly. "Well, I'll sit down anyway if it's okay." I wasn't going to give up now. There had to be a way to break the ice. 

"Elara, what on earth are you doing?" Lucretia yelled with an amused manner from the other side of the table. I grimaced at her and turned back to the boy, who was staring at Lucretia. 

"What's your name? I'm Elara Black", I chatted on. He glared at me suspiciosly. 

"Oh come on! You can at least answer when someone asks you a question! Lighten up, will you?" A strange expression flashed across his face briefly. 

"Tom. Tom Riddle is my name."

I grinned. "Riddle, eh? Well, I guess you're one big mystery then, right?" I laughed jokingly and punched his arm lightly. He turned toward me with his eyebrows raised. 

"No? Well, maybe not then...", I muttered awkwardly. Tom sighed and rolled his eyes. 

"You're very hilarious indeed." 

"Fine then, no joking", I snapped playfully. I glanced up to the enchanted roof that was currently showing a clear night sky full of stars. 

"What do you think about Hogwarts? I think it's very beautiful", I sighed. 

"Yes...", Tom looked up at the roof dreamingly. "This place.. It's not for regular kids, right?" he muttered to himself. 

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, but he never answered me. 

The feast had come to an end and it was time to go to sleep. I searched the stream of students for Lucretia, but she was already heading outside with her friends. She had obviously forgotten that she was supposed to show me the way to the common room. Next to me Tom got up from his seat to leave but before he had time to take one step I grabbed his wrist firmly. He glared at me hostilely. 

"Do you want to walk with me?" I asked coyly before he managed to object. "I don't know where to go."

"Fine", he replied unexpectedly. Perhaps he didn't know where to go either and didn't want to wander around alone. 

I let his wrist go and led him deep into the mass of people crowding by the door. Outside the students rapidly gathered with their housemates and headed for their common rooms. 

"Let's just follow the other Slytherins", I suggested. Tom nodded briskly and marched after a pack of older Slytherins. I tried to catch a glimpse of my sister once more, but she had vanished a long time ago. We followed the older students through a door that led to the dungeons.

"Is our common room here?" whispered another first-year behind us.

"Yes, it's a little further ahead", explained a voice from up ahead. Soon we stopped in front of what looked like a regular wall. But as the older Slytherin who had spoken up before said the password, it moved away, revealing an entrance to the common room. 

It was a large room with a fireplace, lots of chairs, sofas, tables and portraits of famous Slytherins. One of these portrayed my great-grandfather, Phineas Nigellus Black, who had been the headmaster of Hogwarts in his time. There were also emerald and silver curtains, and a curious greenish glow entered from the windows. A few older Slytherins gathered beside the fireplace before going to bed.

"Wow, is that the lake?" I gasped and ran to the window. I could see the bottom, with fish swimming around and water plants swinging softly in their own, slow rythm. "Cool! I thought Lucretia was kidding when she told me that the common room was under water!" 

"Well, anyways, I'll go to bed now. Good night Tom", I smiled to him as I climbed the stairs to the girls bedroom. Tom said nothing, just stood there staring at me all the way to the dormitory. As I got to the bedroom I sneaked discreetly into my bed and shut the emerald curtains. I laid awake for a while, thinking about everything that had happened during the day. Hogwarts, the sorting and Tom Riddle, that strange kid. He was my last thought before drifting to restless sleep.


	2. September 2nd 1938

The next morning I woke up tired and grumpy from a bad night's sleep. One quick look at a watch told me I was going to be late so I hastily dragged myself downstairs to the Great Hall for a quick breakfast and sat next to Lucretia. 

"Well, don't you look lovely", she taunted. With a heavy sigh I half-heartedly attempted to smooth out my ruffled hair, glaring enviously at my sister whose locks glamorously cascaded down, as usual. Judging by appearence we were like night and day, with her exquisitely fair hair contrasted to my dark brown strands. Her eyes were the darkest of brown, while mine where light grey; mother used to say that they looked like someone had drained all the colour out of them. Not the prettiest way to describe someone's eyes, but my mother wasn't one to keep her thoughts to herself. 

"What's your first class?" Lucretia asked. "Are you excited?"

"Potions, but I'm not looking forward to it. I don't have even the first clue about potion making!"

"It's the first lesson silly, no one does. You'll be fine", she replied. "Besides, it's Slughorns class so even if you suck he'll let you pass just for being a Slytherin."

"And where's the classroom?" 

"It's in the same dungeons as our common room, silly. You'll find it if you look really hard", she giggled to her friends.

"Stop that! Remember when mom said you need to behave yourself and help me?" 

"Yeah, but she also told me I need to stop skipping history classes and we all know that's not gonna happen!"

"Ugh, you're such an airhead!"

She bursted into a roaring laughter with her friends. "You see girls, this is what I have to deal with every morning. It's like she never manages to get up on the right side of the bed!"

Jumping up from the table I stormed out of the Great Hall without eating anything, leaving Lucretia to wipe her tears of laughter. I wish I knew enough spells to hex her! 

Rudely pushing past a large group of students by the doors I made my way towards the dungeons. The classroom was in one of the few well-lit rooms in the dungeons, with shelfs filled with jars of ingridients and other unfamiliar, gruesome substances. The classroom was quite crowded already and there were almost no seats left, except for the one next to Tom Riddle. 

"Can I sit here?" I asked while slumping down without waiting for a reply. 

"Apparently you can", he muttered while I was busy searching my school supplies from my bag. I grunted at him and mindlessly flipped through my potions textbook. He didn't speak another word until the potions master and head of Slytherin house, professor Slughorn, arrived to the room. Then he suddenly turned his whole body toward me and stared at me intensively.

"Give me your textbook", he demanded with such authority in his voice it would have startled even a grown man. 

"What? No! Use your own!"

"I don't have one!" 

"What do you mean you don't have one? Why didn't you buy them before school like the rest of us?" 

He didn't reply anymore but looked away, ashamed. A feeling that I had said something inappropriate came over me, making me regret my temper. Reluctantly I slid my book to the middle of our shared desk. 

"Okay I'm sorry, I guess we can share it. But don't think you can get away with being all bossy like that. You should've said 'please'." 

He glared at me hostilely but didn't get a chance to reply because of professor Slughorn, who had appeared behind me. 

"What's going on in here?" he rumbled lightheartedly. "What are you two bickering about?"

"Oh I'm sorry professor, Tom here accidentally forgot his book at home and asked to borrow mine", I chirped. 

"Well, how noble of you, miss...?" 

"Black. Elara Black."

"Ah, you must be Lucretia's sister! What a pleasure to have yet another Black in the house of Slytherin! In that case I just might let your little chit-chat pass by unnoticed", he giggled. "But who's your friend?" 

"Tom Riddle, sir. I'm very honored to finally meet you", said Tom. 

Slughorn seemed very impressed by the boy's politeness. I would be lying if I said it didn't surprise me too. This sudden change in behaviour felt rather uncharacteristic. 

"You seem like a talented boy, Tom. Let's see, I just might have an extra book around here somewhere...", he muttered as he went through a closet near our desk. "Here it is! And don't worry my boy, you can keep it, that'll save you a few extra pennies!" he winked and waddled back to the front to begin the lesson. 

"Why did you lie for me?" inquired Tom as soon as Slughorn was far enough not to hear. 

"Don't flatter yourself, I was just saving my own back", I smirked. He ignorantly turned his gaze to his book and stayed silent for the rest of the class. 

After that potions class we found ourselves sharing a desk in almost every other class, too. It came naturally and we seemed to work well together even if we had our disagreements. We weren't exactly friends, but he didn't seem to mind my presence while I found his rigid nature rather amusing.

He didn't have to borrow any more books from me either. Apparently he had 'forgotten' to buy the potions textbook but I had a feeling he had gotten a little too excited with the money he was given, based on the new, snake-shaped silver clasp on his robes. 

Tom was also extremely competitive, which I took as a thrilling challenge. However, we did manage to get on each others nerves quite a lot because of this. He was incredibly gifted for a first-year and outshone everyone in almost every subject except for charms. He couldn't handle the idea of being in second place so after every test he insisted that we'd compare the results. 

"I got 97%", he bragged one afternoon as we recieved our charms homework results. "And you?" 

"I got 99%", I grinned. "Ha! Finally you get to be in second place!" 

But he was not amused at all. His face stiffened and he clenched his jaw tightly as he grabbed the paper from my hand to examine it. 

"Hey! Give it back!" I tried to reach the paper but he just held it farther away. I had to climb over him to get it. He frantically attempted to push me away but he only managed to make me more determined. I slammed my palm onto his face to give me a boost to get closer while having to adjust my legs in order to avoid falling.

"Ouch! You're crushing my toes!" he complained. 

"Give it back then! You're a really sore loser, you know!" 

"Calm down right now, both of you!" ordered the charms professor sternly from the front of the class. "Otherwise I'll have to take points from Slytherin." 

I returned to my seat and felt a hot wave of embarrasment burning my cheeks. Tom finally handed the paper back and I snatched it from his hand without looking at him. Damn you, Tom Riddle for making me act like a fool!

"Sorry professor, I just wanted to see how I could've improved myself", replied Tom suavely to the professor who seemed pleased with his answer. 

"Suck-up!" I hissed. He only grimaced at me and marched out of the classroom without another word. 

Even though charms class was my strongest subject, I found the most interesting of them all to be defense against the dark arts. I could tell the same about Tom, for this was the class he always paid extra attention in. In this class, our personal competition was the fiercest and I was losing it. 

We had an exam coming up right before the Holidays and I knew I had to upgrade my studying in order to win. So on one crispy December evening I decided to sneak out to the restricted section of the library to gain some additional knowledge.

I crept out of the dungeons and headed to the library through the most hidden route I could think of. I nearly got lost for accidentally taking a wrong direction in the dark staircase but eventually I reached the ancient doors of the library. I looked over my shoulder to see no one was around and crept to the door.

"Alohomora", I whispered and quietly slid inside.

The library was almost pitch black but I didn't dare to create any light yet. I discreetly made my way toward the back while curiously exploring the vast bookshelfs that seemed go on endlessly.

After I had reached the restricted section I frantically began searching for the section of dark creatures. The theoretical part of the exam would include especially zombies and werewolfs and I had to admit these creatures were not my greatest strenght. 

Once I found the right section I jumped back out of surprise. On the ground there were several books that looked as if they had been thrown there in search of something. Someone has already been here! 

I lifted my gaze to see a shape of another student sitting near the window, reading in the pale moonlight. As he turned his head to the light I immediately recognized him. 

"Tom!" I gasped loudly. 

He startled and sprung up, looking like he'd seen a ghost. It quickly turned into annoyance as he realized it was only me. 

"Shh! Are you an idiot?!" he hissed. 

"Who's there?" called the voice of the Hogwarts librarian from somewhere in the hallway. Panic began to take over me as I tried to quickly figure out the best way out of the situation. What was she even doing up in this hour? Tom was about to sprint toward the door but I stepped in his way at the last minute. 

"The books!" I whispered hastily. 

"What about them?" 

"Put 'em back, otherwise she'll know someone was here!" 

"She wouldn't if you hadn't shown up!" 

I shot him a deadly glare and angrily shoved one of the books into his arms.

"Fine!" he snapped and began throwing the books swiftly back to their places. I was aching to go as I could hear the steps of the librarian echoing closer by each moment.

"Okay, come on!" I rushed and held my hand out after he was done. 

"What?" he huffed. 

"There's no point to split, one of us would just get caught anyway!" 

"Move it, Riddle!" I snapped as he still hesitated. 

He grabbed my hand and together we darted to the door and behind the corner of the hallway just as the pair of steps reached the library. We kept running and running until we reached the dungeons where I finally dared to stop. Out of breath and tensed up after the panic of almost getting caught I settled myself on the stairs to catch my breath. Tom was halfway down the stairs as he suddenly stopped and turned around.

"How did you know I was there?" he asked. 

"I didn't, I came to study for the test." 

He raised his eyebrows and let a wide grin light his face up. "Are you worried you're going to fail?" 

"No!" I exclaimed, feeling my cheeks burn.

"Ha!" he snorted. "You just have to deal with losing to me because it won't be the last time." 

A hot flash of anger brewed inside of me. The stony stairs felt cold under my palms as I grabbed the edge, trying to prevent myself from cursing him. How could he be so arrogant?

"Tom Riddle, you are an evil, mean, insufferable git! At first I thought you were just shy but now I see the real reason why you don't have any friends!"

Whipping around and leaving him behind I dashed back to the common room and straight to the dormitory. The loud slam of the door had waken up Jillian Parkinson, one of my roommates.

"Elara, is everything alright?" she mumbled drowsily. "Where have you been?"

"I'm fine", I snapped. The frustrated tone didn't convince Jillian at all. She got up and sat herself next to me on my bed, saying nothing. She only held my hand, surrounded by the sound of silent snoring. Her touch soothed the anger inside of me and gradually the feeling faded, leaving behind exhaustion. The last thing I saw before drifting to sleep was Jillian's warm smile as she tucked me into my bed.


	3. First Year, 1938

"So what exactly happened last night?" asked Jillian with her mouth full of bread. "You've been awfully quiet all morning."

Letting out a long sigh I lifted my gaze from the breakfast table and turned to face her. I explained her my intention to go to the restricted section, accidentally finding Tom and almost getting caught. 

"He just laughed at me like I was nothing. To me, competing over better grades was only a friendly game, but apparently to him it's the only thing that matters!"

Jillian nodded understandingly. "Don't worry about him, he's nothing compared to you."

There was a silence, apart from the chattering of the students round the Great Hall. It didn't feel appropriate to just ignore him from now on; I had to get back at him. 

"You know what? I'm going to prove him wrong. I will become the best student in Defence Against the Dark Arts and he's going to lose!"

"You don't need to prove yourself-", she began but I had already grabbed the Dark Arts textbook from my bag and slammed it on the table. "Will you help me?"

Jillian looked at me wearily and sighed. "I guess I will. But maybe a bit later, we have Potions in five minutes."

We arrived just in time before the class began. Only when Jillian took her seat at the front of the class did I remember who was seated next to me. Tom was peacefully going through his homework assignments as I sat down and defiantly moved my seat as far away from him as possible. He glared at me with an amused spark in his eye but said nothing.

Halfway through the class, Slughorn announced that we would have to do a homework project with a partner that would crucially affect our final grade. The assignment was to brew an antidote for common poisons and the winning pair would get extra points on their potions exam. I managed to cast a couple of hopeful glances at Jillian when Slughorn announced that the task must be completed with the person sitting next to you. My insides filled with disappointment and I accidentally let out a small groan.

"What's the matter with you? If you have something to say, then say it", said Tom.

"I know you think I'm lesser than you and that I'm an idiot or something but I just want to get this assignment done, so you're just going to have to deal with that!"

"I don't think you're an idiot", he stated with a matter-of-fact tone.

"Then why did you act so arrogantly after that... library incident?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I thought we had a competition. I was being competitive, not arrogant." He took a long look at me. "You're a little sensitive, aren't you?"

"I am not!" I snapped which made him laugh, something I hadn't seen him do before.

"Whatever. So, are we going to win this thing or what?"

During the next months I was forced to spend more and more time with Tom due to the assignment, but after a little while I noticed that it was becoming easier to be around him. We had to do all sorts of research for the assignment since we were expected to make this potion completely on our own. Tom was still rather distant, but had significantly decreased his arrogance. Because of this I slowly let go of my fantasies of defeating him in the Dark Arts as I no longer felt inferior to him. By the end of the project I had to admit we were a pretty great team.

We were sitting side by side in our usual seats as once more another Potions class was about to end. This was the lesson in which we were supposed to present our potions. Slughorn circled around the classroom, evaluating the results of each pairs work. When he reached our desk he paused, sniffed the potion, and let out a delighted exclamation. 

"Excellent! Simply excellent! I think we have our winner!" he praised. "Well, I think that was all for today. Class dismissed!" 

As we were gathering our stuff I saw Jillian heading toward me out of the corner of my eye. She looked quite tired and annoyed and slammed her textbook on my desk as she reached us.

"Congratulations, you two!" she huffed. "You managed to brew a brilliant potion meanwhile ours looked like black goo since that Griffin kid boiled it for too long! Do you have any idea what it was like to work with him? Not very great, I'm telling you!"

I let out a little laugh as we were heading to the door. "Oh come on, it couldn't have been that bad." She was just about to reply when we were interrupted by Slughorn.

"Elara and Tom, would you stay here for a moment?" I glanced at Jillian who closed the door behind her and waited in the hallway. Were we in some kind of trouble?

"As you know, the best potion brewers will recieve extra points for the final exam. But I also have a request to make", he said. "Ever since I began teaching I have gathered a small group of gifted students from each year. It's a club where you can spend time with like-minded individuals and make meaningful connections with successful people. After today I'm convinced you two would be an excellent addition to this club. So, would you like to join?"

This club was more than familiar to me, because Lucretia was a part of it. I remember her being insufferable in her first year when she was asked to join. I happily pictured the look of dismay on her face when I got to tell her that I had been invited as well. Next to me Tom's eyes had lit up and he seemed just as excited as I was. But the expression on his face didn't depict the childlike excitement I was feeling, instead it made him appear almost unpleasant.

"Of course we would", I answered, glaring at Tom. In the blink of an eye the animalistic look was gone and he was nodding enthusiastically. As if I had just imagined it all.

On the last few weeks of school before Christmas I noticed him adding his name to the list of students who would stay at the school during the Holidays. I found this curious but didn't question him about it, knowing it would have been pointless. But as we were warming ourselves before the fireplace in the common room one evening, he suddenly brought the subject up.

"I'm staying at the school for the Holidays", he blurted.

"I noticed. How come?"

He was silent for a long while. I began to think he wouldn't answer me after all, until he sniffed loudly and sat up. "Because I don't have anywhere worth returning to", he muttered bitterly to the flames.

"Won't your family miss you?" I asked gently. He shot a hostile glare at me, making me panic. Obviously I had said something horribly inappropriate.

"No. They won't, because I live in an orphanage", he spat. "My mother died giving birth to me."

"Tom, I'm so sorry I shouldn't have asked", I whispered. "What about your father?"

He was staring at the flames again, clenching his jaw. "I don't have a father", he growled. There was something odd in the way he spoke. Almost as if he was testing something. Like how I would react, for an example.

"Oh Tom", I sighed. I cautiously moved towards him and slowly put arms around him. To my surprise he didn't push me away, so I laid my head on his shoulder and sat with him while the night around us grew darker.

I couldn't offer any words of advice, so I just stayed there, breathing quietly. I observed Tom carefully while he was deep in his thoughts. His features had softened and he looked almost sentimental. He had let all the harshness and hostility down and that was something I rarely ever saw him do, even after that night.

A few days later I left the school for the Holidays. It was good to be back home, but I found it difficult to not think about Tom all alone at the school. None of the other Slytherins either of us had acquainted with had decided to stay.

My brother Orion was bombing me with questions about Hogwarts. He was to attend in two years, but he had been eagerly waiting ever since Lucretia started at Hogwarts. Too eagerly, if you ask me.

"What is your favourite subject? Is it true that Slytherins common room is a cave under water? Are Gryffindors really the stupidest house?" he inquired. I glanced at Lucretia who was sitting on the other side of our Christmas dinner table.

"What have you been telling him?" I mouthed at her, but she only grinned mischievously.

"Calm down Orion, you'll see for yourself one day", said my mother and turned to me. "Your father and I are so proud of you for being in Slytherin like we once were. And for getting into that little club of Slughorn's,of course."

"Thanks, mom. I really feel like home in Slytherin", I replied, like I was expected to.

"Well, I'm glad", she huffed. "Have you made any friends yet?"

"Oh, she's made a friend", snorted Lucretia. I shot a deadly glare at her.

"What? It's not exactly a secret that you spend all your time with that weird Riddle kid."

"He's not weird", I snapped.

"Yes, he is. Let me tell you Elara, there's something very odd about that boy", replied Lucretia and sat back.

"Who is this... Riddle?" my father joined the conversation. "I don't want you around any suspicious people."

I sighed. "He's not suspicious. He is my friend", I grunted.

"Riddle... I don't know anyone by that name..." muttered dad.

"You know how important family is, Elara. How can we trust him if we know nothing about his background?" said mom. I let out a frustrated sigh but remained silent.

I couldn't possibly tell my parents where Tom was from. Not only would they not take it well, it wasn't their business in the first place.

My parents were usually very dear to me, but it seemed like the older I got the more I felt like they had no interest in me, only who I was supposed to be. The only things that mattered were my grades and a well-maintained social status. That Christmas dinner was the first time ever I felt like I didn't belong to my home.

At last it was time to return to Hogwarts for the spring semester. As I entered the castle with Lucretia, I was pleasantly surprised to find Tom waiting for me near the entrance to the dungeons.

"Tom!" I exclaimed and ran to give him a hug. He flinched slightly but didn't push me away. Above the stairs that led to the upper floors professor Dumbledore was glaring at us intensely. I met his gaze, but as soon as I did a voice behind me cried out mockingly.

"Aww, how adorable! When is the wedding?" yelled Lucretia. She was lingering near us with her usual group of friends, all cackling like a pack of dolled up crows. I grimaced at them and glanced back to where Dumbledore had been a while ago, but he had disappeared.

The spring semester passed by in a blink of an eye. Tom and I had sort of became friends, but our social circle grew a lot during that time, thanks to the SlugClub meetings. Jillian had also accepted in the Club since she had turned out to be an exceptional Quidditch player, even though it was rare for a first year to even make to the team. Lucretia was being her usual taunting self toward us at the meetings, but even she calmed down after a while. Soon the first year came to an end, and it was time to say goodbye to Tom. For the last two weeks he had been in a considerably bad mood, and I realized it had to do with having to return to the orphanage. I had overheard him ask the headmaster for a permission to stay at school for the summer too, but his request hadn't been granted.

"Will you write to me?" I asked him at King's Cross station as we had just arrived.

"Yes. But I must go now. See you next autumn", he replied and proceeded to walk toward the portal between ours and the muggle side of the station in a manner that implied he would rather eat a hat full of sand than walked through that gate. My heart was aching for him and I was furiously thinking of ways I could help until Lucretia purposely bumped into me to shove me where our parents were already waiting.


	4. Second Year, 1939-40

During the summer Tom and I exchanged numerous letters with the help of our family owl, Mercury. He told me more about the orphanage he lived in, and how the muggles working there seemed to be slightly afraid of him for being a wizard. Of course, they didn't know exactly what he was or why he had been selected to attend Hogwarts, but they had a hunch that the weird things happening around Tom ever since he was a child had something to do with the school. This meant that they mainly let him do whatever he wanted, as long as he didn't cause any trouble. Despite the freedom he had, it was exceedingly clear how miserable he felt while staying there. 

I met Tom again on September 1st, 1939. He seemed relieved as the train began sluggishly gliding toward its destination, leaving the muggle world behind. During the second year we spent most of our time with each other, even though both of us had made a fair amount of acquaintances. Even though Tom didn't seem to have much interest in upholding a wide social circle, his unusual magical talents inspired awe from his peers and especially during Slugclub meetings he was often the center of attention. 

The competition we had last year over our grades ceased to exist, instead we were now helping each other. Or to put it more accurately, Tom was helping me most of the time. It kind of bothered me that I still didn't know much about him or his past even though we had known each other for over a year. But all that changed in one evening.

We were finishing our homework assignment about the four finders of Hogwarts by the fireplace, when suddenly a curtain of blonde hair blocked my vision. It was Lucretia, who had leaned over the back of my chair to see what I was working on.

"Is that the best you can do?" she mocked and placed herself on the armrest of my chair. "That's average at best, you know."

"How would you know? You barely passed History of Magic last year!" I spat at her which only made her shrug. 

"Anyways, everyone knows that the only founder who matters is Salazar Slytherin! Imagine how prestigious this school would be if the others would have listened to him", she sighed. "I wouldn't be surprised if our family's bloodline would eventually lead up to him."

"Don't be stupid, we'd have parseltongues in our family if that was the case", I replied.

"What's a parseltongue?" asked Tom, who hadn't seemed to be listening until now.

"Someone who can speak to snakes", said Lucretia while ignorantly checking her nails. Tom fixed an intense gaze on her and slowly put his homework aside.

"I can do that", he whispered. Both me and my sister whipped our heads toward him in a surprised manner. 

"You can speak to snakes?" asked Lucretia, her tone radiating disbelief.

"Yes. I can make them listen to me, and do what I say. They come to me and obey me", he answered. Then he let out a few harsh and strange sounds from his mouth. "That's how I speak to them."

Lucretia looked astonished. "That's... incredible", she whispered. "Salazar Slytherin was a known parseltongue, but it's a very uncommon ability. This could mean that you are directly related to him." 

Tom stared at her intensely, it was clear that he desperately wanted to know more. He looked very pleased with himself for having such a rare gift, but at the same time didn't seem to have a clue what to do with it.

"Rumour has it that Slytherin built a secret chamber in the castle and hid some kind of creature in it that was supposed to purge the school of anyone unworthy to study magic", told Lucretia. "I bet it means purging the school of all of these mudbloods. After all, you can't expect someone who is basically half-muggle to understand the art of magic." 

"How do you know all this?" asked Tom. 

"Every old pure-blood family knows the legend", I replied. "It is also said that the chamber can only be opened by a true heir of Slytherin. Tom, that could be you!"

"Who are your parents?" inquired Lucretia. Tom shifted uncomfortably and lowered his gaze.

"I don't know", he mumbled. "I only know my mother died while giving birth and left me at that orphanage."

"Well, I suggest you find out everything you can about them", said Lucretia apologetically. It didn't escape me that Tom decided not to mention that the orphanage he lived in happened to be an orphanage for muggles. But if he really was the heir, why would he have to be ashamed of his past? Any proper pure-blood family would respect him simply for being related to Slytherin.

"Do you think Slughorn could help us with that?" I asked.

"No, I don't think it's wise to tell anyone in school about this", said Lucretia hastily. "If he is the heir and manages to open the chamber, everyone would know who did it. After all we don't know what's inside of it."

"Well, I'll help you find your family", I said. Tom glanced at me and gave me a slight smile but I could tell he was already deep in his thoughts.

After that encounter Tom became obsessed with his heritage and the chamber. He was aching to know more about his father who he believed was the wizard. We spent countless nights in the library searching for any sign of anyone named Riddle who might have attended the school.

"Are you sure it's your father?" I asked one night as we were once again drowning in lists of old students and ancient books about the schools most remarkable events. "What about your mother?"

"No, it couldn't have been her!" exclaimed Tom. "Why would she have left me in a muggle orphanage if she was a witch?"

I could see how distressed not finding any evidence of his family made him, so I dropped the subject. But I couldn't shake the instinctive feeling that a single Riddle had never set foot on the school grounds before Tom.

As the year passed by he gradually let go of his frantic search, but I knew he hadn't forgotten, just trying to figure out different ways to find answers. Instead of the Riddles, he shifted his focus to other known pure-blood families and their history, immersing himself into the lives of pure-blood society. One time I found him reading about the previous Headmasters of Hogwarts and noticed he paid extra attention to those who had belonged to the house of Slytherin.

"Was Phineas Nigellus Black related to you?" he had asked.

"Yeah, he was my great-grandfather. But unfortunately he died the year Lucretia was born so I never met him", I replied. "I don't think he had anything to do with Salazar Slytherin, though." He didn't answer or even seem to be listening, as he had already moved on to the next story.

Lucretia and I had made a decision to tell our parents about Tom. They had been as amazed by the fact that he was a parseltongue just as much as we had been but unfortunately couldn't tell any more about Slytherin's bloodline then we could. Because of that letter we sent, however, my parents became extremely fascinated by Tom and insisted that he had to visit us during summer. They no longer thought he was weird or suspicious, all it had taken to change that was a possible relation to an influential person.

To my relief Tom had put an end to his obsessive searching by the time of summer holiday. It had become quite exhausting to watch and I was glad to have my friend back. Unfortunately the end of the school year meant that he had to once again return to that orphanage, but we had agreed that he'd spend the last two weeks of the holiday in my house. Still, as we were saying our goodbyes at the King's Cross Station, I felt hollow and had to swallow the urge to ask him to come spend the whole summer with us. Despite being annoyed with his obsession with heritage over the past year, I still reminisce it with great tenderness. After all, it was one of the good years, before everything turned to chaos.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry for not updating more frequently, I'm really busy with schoolwork until the end of March. After that I'll post at least one new chapter every week. And until then I will be posting new chapters whenever I have time. But please be patient, I'm not going to stop writing this but I do not want to rush out chapters as that will affect the quality of the story.


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